The earthquake in Japan accounted for 57 percent of 2011's economic losses. Losses from natural catastrophes that were insured came to $110 billion, while losses from man-made disasters were about $6 billion.
"Last year saw extraordinary and devastating catastrophic events., said Kurt Karl, chief economist at Swiss Re. "The earthquakes in Japan, New Zealand, and Turkey, as well as the floods in Australia and Thailand, were unprecedented and brought not only massive destruction but also the loss of thousands of people's lives.
The earthquake in Japan cost the insurance industry $35 billion, making it the most expensive earthquake on record. Lucia Revere, the company's senior catastrophe data analyst and co-author of the study, pointed out that "Japan's earthquake insurance protection is very low, particularly for commercial properties, so the insurance industry will bear only 17 percent of the total losses. Had Japan been more fully insured, 2011 would certainly have been the most expensive year ever also in terms of insured losses?' New Zealand has a lot of earthquake insurance, especially for residential properties. The February 2011 earthquake there, the third most expensive in history, triggered insurance claims of $12 billion, covering 80 percent of economic losses.